Eric Thompson: Pedestrians failing duty of care

Looking both ways before stepping off a curb is basic common sense. Photo / Brett Phibbs

I read recently in the Herald that Wellington Council wrote a cheque out last year to the tune of $70,000 for a marketing campaign telling folk about their changes to Manners Mall.

From what I can gather, it's the council's fault people are putting themselves in the path of a bus, not the pedestrians' fault for a lack of due care and attention.

I don't know about you readers out there but I don't need a campaign to tell me not to step off the curb in front of a very large vehicle with a slab front.

I think I may have missed something over the years.

Can anyone tell me if the road code - only cross the road at a pedestrian crossing, don't run across a road, don't step out from between cars and other common sense rules are still being taught at schools?

Or, is it all about visual diaries and saving the planet these days?

As most people will now realise, I'm not into saving the planet. When God's great light bulb in the sky goes out, the place is doomed anyway.

Bear Grylls might get away with a heck of a lot of stuff in Man vs Wild - with help of a cameraman, a producer and a few other support staff - but in a man vs bus episode, even Grylls is going to be the next big loser.

Pedestrians in my book are the new cyclists.

More and more of them, pedestrians that is, think it's perfectly okay to wander along without a single thought about the consequences, step off the pavement and start to cross the road. Normally at a point they choose and not at a zebra crossing or at the lights when the little green man comes on. There is no such thing as equal rights on the road when it comes to objects weighing tonnes hitting humans weighing kilograms. If you want to survive, accept the fact you're always going to come off second best.

Back to pedestrians. Would someone also like to explain to me why on earth you'd want to step on to a thoroughfare used by motorised transport without looking left, right and left again?

Before you folk from abroad who drive on the other side of the road start grabbing a pen and start scratching out a comment, read on. If you look both ways BEFORE stepping off the pavement you'll see whatever's coming from either way.

I have seen, on numerous occasions, people step off the curb and then start to look.

Not a cunning plan in Wellington when there might be a bus about to arrive in your face.

Another thought. Every bus I've been around makes a noise. Wouldn't you think if you can't be bothered to look for it, you might just hear it? I'll hazard a guess that either a cell phone or an iPod will have been a factor in at least some of the vehicle vs pedestrian incidents over the years. The number of times I've had people walk into me on the pavement with their heads down texting is well into double figures now.

Maybe the Government can ban texting and walking as well. It would get my vote, especially if texting was banned in any public place.

Back to the buses - I haven't heard much about the poor bus drivers who have had someone suddenly appear in front of them. Imagine how they must feel and I bet some of the poor sods blame themselves.

It's about time we all took responsibility for our own actions and stop looking to others to take the blame, for what at times, are our own inadequacies and inattention.